Deadline to apply for special hunt permits is May 18

By NCBI
Apr 27, 2011

Hunters have through May 18 to apply for special hunting permits for fall deer, elk, mountain goat, moose, bighorn sheep, and turkey seasons in Washington state.

Permit winners will be selected by random drawing conducted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) in late June. The special permits qualify hunters to hunt at times and places beyond those authorized by a general hunting license.

Applications may be purchased from license vendors statewide or on WDFW's website at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/wdfw/special_permits.html. Applications must be submitted on that website or by calling 1-877-945-3492 toll-free.

Like last year, applications for this year's permits include a wider range of hunting options for deer, elk, moose, and big-horn sheep than before, said Dave Ware, WDFW game division manager.

"Hunters have told us they like being able to apply for a specific type of hunt - such as `buck deer' or `second deer' - rather than have all deer permits drawn from the same pool," Ware said. "In addition, hunters can submit applications in multiple special-hunt categories."

Instructions and details on special-permit hunts are described in the 2011-12 Big Game Hunting Seasons & Regulations pamphlet, available at WDFW offices, license vendors, and online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/hunting/regulations. Additional information is available at http://wdfw.wa.gov/hunting/permits/2010_changes_faq.html.

Before applying for a special-hunt permit, hunters must purchase an application and any necessary hunting licenses and transport tags online, by phone, or from a licensed dealer for each species they wish to hunt. The cost for each application is $6.50 for residents, $60.50 for non-residents, and $4.10 for youth under 16 years of age.

Ware reminds hunters to update their mailing address in the system when purchasing their special hunting permit applications and licenses. Each year, hundreds of special hunting permits are returned due to invalid addresses. Results of the special-permit drawing will be available online by the end of June at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/wa/specialhuntlookup. Winners will be notified by mail by the middle of July.